Two Italian police officers were shot and wounded Sunday outside the prime minister's office in Rome, as the new leader and his Cabinet were being sworn in about a kilometer away.

An eyewitness described the suspect as a tall man in his 40s and dressed in a grey suit with a tie. Police were able to arrest the suspect shortly after he opened fire late Sunday morning.

The two wounded police officers are expected to survive their injuries, but one was shot in the neck and remains in serious condition.

The shooting took place as Enrico Letta and his Cabinet took their oaths in the presidential office after he cobbled together a coalition government between his center-left forces and the conservative bloc of former prime minister Silvio Berlusconi.

It was not immediately clear if the attack was linked to the swearing-in of the new government. However, it came at a time of heightened political tensions in the country.